What Vuong did was morally, ethically and politically wrong. But to be expelled for a procedural matter would be quite stunning
You may be familiar with the phrase’ game it out.’ It’s a way to examine ideas, scenarios, concepts and strategies to figure out what could happen – and what the end result could be. In politics and the media, we game out everything from written pieces to communications strategies. For fun, let’s game out a…
Creating a more inclusive economy
Solving poverty in our communities goes far beyond charities and social agencies. Graduates with business, civic planning, arts and other backgrounds have just as much to contribute as social workers, according to University of Alberta poverty researcher Maria Mayan. “We have great young thinkers within our university who want to make a difference in the world…
The ZVOX AccuVoice AV157 is a compact soundbar that uses the science behind hearing aids to create more clarity in recorded dialogue
Wouldn’t it be nice if you could actually decipher the dialogue on TV? As sound delivery advances with the advent of immersive technologies like surround sound and Dolby Atmos, we still sometimes have to crank up the volume or turn on close captioning. Sometimes we even play a passage again to make out what’s being…
Any sane person understands that plastic-phobia is irrational and a non-problem
Canadian governments, like many around the world, are once again in the grip of toxic plastic-phobia: an irrational and potentially harmful fear of plastics. Proposals to ban “single-use” plastics (under varying definitions) are all the rage across Canada, where the plastic-phobes, like locusts, have re-emerged from the obscurity imposed on them by the imminent spectre…
Strong partnerships with employers help bring U of A into top 100 globally, top five in Canada
The University of Alberta is ranked among the top 100 post-secondary institutions in the world and top five in Canada when it comes to preparing students for the workforce, according to the latest global ranking of graduate employability. The U of A is listed as 99th globally, 35th in North America and fifth nationally according…
China's crackdown on cryptocurrencies may be the first shot in its battle for financial dominance
Canadian and British regulators are on an entirely different wavelength to a significant portion of the cryptocurrency market and industry. They have implemented new regulations and cast doubt on the future of decentralized digital currencies. The moves come as China is cracking down on all but one form of cryptocurrency, forcing Bitcoin miners out of…
Underpinning it all, like the safety net to a secure supply, will be fossil fuels
The kingdom of Queen Elizabeth I was humming along quite nicely when, around the mid-1500s, Her Majesty caught wind of an environmental crisis in the offing. The forests were disappearing. Wood was the first energy source and had been so for millenniums. But kilns of industry and hearths of homes had been eating up the…
The bull run is on
Is Brent crude oil heading toward US$80 a barrel? If the market signals and the pundits are to be trusted, the bull run is on. Oil prices headed to a third straight week of gains on Friday. Brent futures rose 84 cents, or 1.1 per cent, to settle at US$78.09 a barrel, while U.S. West…
The planet is watching as China and the U.S. prepare for all possibilities
The hasty new geopolitical alliance of Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States (AUKUS) is clearly a change of strategy designed to enhance security in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. The alliance envisages the United States and Great Britain providing Australia with the technology to develop nuclear-powered submarines, among other things. The U.S. is…
Get rid of the negative thoughts and distractions and focus on what's important to you
The news is filled with folks complaining. From politics to economics and everything in between, people are focused on what we don’t have rather than what we do. It’s such a deeply-rooted problem that it makes me wonder if our focus is the primary culprit for all the unhappiness we perceive. When we imagine ourselves…
A naturally beautiful region with equally vibrant people, Acadia is a Canadian treasure
Troy Media publisher Doug Firby is part of a group of Canadians who call themselves ConnecTour. Starting last May in British Columbia and ending in October in Newfoundland, they hope to make an 8,000-km bicycle journey across the country, discovering how the COVID-19 pandemic has reshaped our lives and sense of community. Watch for their…
Wind and solar farms replacing the 84% of global energy from fossil fuels is technically impossible
In a previous column I pointed out that since switching coal-fuelled power plants to natural gas cuts CO2 emissions in half, exporting liquefied natural gas (LNG) to displace coal benefits our economy and reduces global emissions. And that since converting gasoline and diesel-fuelled vehicles and ships to natural gas cuts emissions by 25 per cent,…
Don’t be afraid to enjoy nature – just do it on their terms and with their survival in mind
With COVID-19 an overriding part of our lives, many folks have begun to see and appreciate nature like never before. Whenever we encounter nature, and while our actions may seem harmless, they might be dangerous to wildlife. Wildlife can be negatively impacted by what we do and how we do it. Having studied wildlife most…
Changing colour of alpine lakes may be a sign of worsening water quality, according to reports
Another casualty of the disappearance of glaciers in the Canadian Rockies is the vanishing of the iconic turquoise of glacier-fed alpine lakes, according to a University of Alberta limnologist who documented the unfortunate change in the latest look at the health of Canada’s mountains. In an essay written for the fourth annual State of the Mountains…
Impact of COVID on tourism greater than 9/11, SARS, '08 economic crisis combined
The COVID-19 crisis led to significant travel restrictions around the world. Canada has totally or partially closed its borders to tourists and non-essential travellers. Travel between provinces has also been restricted. Provinces such as New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador banned non-essential travel or all travel between provinces. And we were told not…